Emmett L. Coughlin

Emmett L. Coughlin (died 1923) was a Bureau of Prohibition agent who was murdered by former agent Nelson Van Alden.

Biography
Emmett L. Coughlin was from Cicero, Illinois, and he joined the Bureau of Prohibition during Prohibition. Coughlin made the acquaintance of former agent Nelson Van Alden in 1923, during which time Van Alden was working for the Farraday steel company under the pseudonym of "George Mueller". Coughlin would meet Van Alden again during a raid on a speakeasy where Van Alden and some coworkers were spending time, but Coughlin decided to let Van Alden go, but only after Van Alden agreed to pay the fine directly to Coughlin. They would meet for one last time when Van Alden returned to his apartment to find Couglin sitting there, demanding to talk with him. Van Alden's girlfriend, Sigrid, thought that Coughlin was there to arrest Van Alden for his past crimes, and she beat Coughlin down as he talked with Van Alden about the poor quality hardware that Van Alden sold him. Van Alden told Sigrid that Coughlin was not there to arrest him, but to complain about some goods, but Van Alden knew that he had to finish him off. As Sigrid held Coughlin's legs, Van Alden smothered Coughlin with a handkerchief, killing him.